Is a Close Cooperation with the Medical Facilities in Charge of Detailed Examinations Attempted?

Abstract

Objectives and Methods. For people requiring detailed examinations after something has been found during screening, a close cooperation between the facilities performing the screenings and those in charge of the detailed examinations is very important in regard to appropriate management. In our society, we perform a detailed follow-up of people requiring detailed examinations. In the 2-year period from April 2007 to March 2009, we conducted follow-up studies on 1,911 subjects who underwent chest examinations at our society and were assessed as "E (Diagnostic classification of chest X-ray, suggestive lung cancer, based on General Rule for Clinical and Pathological Record of Lung Cancer, 2010, The Japanese Lung Cancer Society)" based on the chest X-ray examination and given detected examination at medical facilities. We examined the number of follow-ups and the duration of the follow-ups at those medical facilities, and respective reasons for discontinuations in the those cases. Results. A definitive diagnosis was given in 1,411 out of 1,487 cases (94.9%) in the reports from the medical facilities performing the detailed examinations. For 1,323 (89.0%) of these cases the diagnosis was made within a month. Among the 164 cases who were followed for more than 2 months, the follow-up period for 120 cases was within 1 year. The follow-up was discontinued in 28 cases. The most frequent reason for discontinuing the follow-up was personal request in 20 cases. In 5 cases, the medical facilities performing the detailed examinations did not report the outcome. The diagnosis for the individual who were loss for follow-up were "indeterminate" in 25 cases, "suspicion of lung cancer" in 2 cases. In 1 case follow-up was discontinued even though a diagnosis had been established. Conclusion. These results suggested that a close cooperation between screening facilities and the facilities in charge of the detailed examinations is very important regarding the appropriate management of screenings.